I know it's great, I've just ran it forever and like to shake things up occasionally. It's amazing but unexciting, it's the text book example of generically strong.
To be fair, I expect my drafters will have the same responses as you to my possible cut, so I'm in the minority on being bored with strix.
I'd say it's a better Cultivate overall. In my experience my green decks running cultivate are base green and looking to fix for splashes with the Cultivate; going from 2G to 1GG feels less taxing for green than it might be for other colours.
The upside of cashing in a dork or ETB value greature (like reclamation sage) feels like a fair trade off for the extra pip.
I Having to sacrifice a creature is definitely worse than pitching a card from your hand,
Is it? I think it's about even. Some effects would much rather sac a thing than pitch a card. In the mid-late game pitching a card is less appealing than sacing an out classed body.
I think the "non-token" clause is a sign it was too good and it had to be toned down a bit.
Disappointed no-one is calling it psycofrog, that's really my only complaint.
I've ran Strix for years so I may give this a shot over it for variety now that I cut tinker. Is its the correct swap? Likly not, but this little guys too cut not to try.
It's very hard to evaluate but it might play OK, originally I was on the same thinking of "why would I sac an elf" but playing a T1 elf and sacing it to this might be a decent line of play.
If you sac an elf you are card neutral (expend 2 cards, get 1 in play 1 to hand) and your mana is more resilient than the elf would have been. You still get to uptap t2, drop a land and make 3 mana with access to any colours you wanted to grab.
If its not a chase rare I might try it over Cultivate.
I really hope this is part of a spicy cycle. I'd be all over the red version if it was Char with the alternate cost of saccing a red creature (although sadly its likely gonna blow up artifacts).
I think there was a window of time to transition your account, but it wouldn't be done automatically because of data protection reasons. That was over a year ago so I'd guess you've missed your chance unfortunitly.
This is so cool, but even with three powerlevel exclusions from Boros I don't know if this can compete. No immediate impact is a hard ask from a card that's multicolor of the two most aggressive colours. Will test either way.
I wouldn't say no impact; it adds 2 perminants to the board, represents a 4/4 with a bag of keywords or you can put the sword elsewhere.
It can't be cleanly answered by 1 spell so I'd never be worried about being blown out casting this. The equipment is going to make attacks alot easier on later turns if it hangs about and the mouse is a 3/3 for 3, so not an underwhelming stat line on attack or defence.
Showing its age but still a solid include for me. I think my drafters prefer cruise for the raw draw power/cost ratio, but I'd rather pay the extra mana and get 2 gas cards.
If 2 cards from your top 8 isn't turning things around for you then there isn't much hope.
Even paying 4 at instant speed feels like a solid deal.
Has been great since inclusion for me. Pooping out servos with spare mana is decent and being able to turn random thopters into 4/4s is really great.
Has all the usuall artifact synergy of being a cheap artifact plus it just keeps making more.
Left alone for long enough it can generate a ton of value. I think it needs anough source of thopters to really go crazy, but I have definitly won long grind games off the back of making endless flying threats.
It's a solid managing for control decks as in the late game if you don't need your interaction counter you can just make servo for 2 or even just pay the 6 for a thopter that can chip in after you untap
Cool. Definitely not either or, my cube definitely has room for both.
The first cast of nettlecyst is definitely better value as you don't need a creature. But plating is better imo if you have any plan to move it about as it only costs 1 on your turn. Your opponent has to respect the fact you can move it instant place for BB
It has been on my mind latly; cranial plating has been doing very well for me lately, as have Karntructs, so I am interested in seeing how this plays. I have been pushing my artifact decks a bit more because I like cheap cards such as retrofitter and shadowspear, and they are great for alot of decks.
If Cranial Plating is doing work for you, then this should as well. Nettlecyst is miles better than Cranial Plating, IMO, since it comes attached to a creature and boosts toughness as well. I like Nettlecyst in my cube, but currently have zero interest in running Cranial Plating.
What's the average size this gets to? My main concern is the 2 cost to equip makes it hard to swap it about for attack/defence, but I guess the trade off is I can slam this as a 3 mana 5/5 sometimes.
As big as the average Karnstruct. In the right deck it's not hard for it to be a 3/3 or 4/4 by turn 4, but it can really get out of hand afterwards. What makes this deadly is that you can equip this to something with evasion in the late game like True-Name Nemesis / Kappa Cannoneer / some random flying token, or whatever you make unblockable with Whirler Rogue.
Is the enchantment part trinket text in most environments? I feel like most decks in my environment are running 2 at most.
I always forget that this counts enchantments. Unless you're running an enchantment theme, then this part is just a small bonus. Nettlecyst is through and through an artifacts matters card in a typical Vintage cube.
Thanks for the feedback. I think cranial plating has been over performing to be fair, but it put this card back on my radar. The 1 to equip on plating has been a big part of it though as it can move about for attack/defence. Thopters + plating has done a lot of work as it's easy enough to pump them to 5 power.
Think I'm definitely going to try nettlecyst next time I'm making changes.
It has been on my mind latly; cranial plating has been doing very well for me lately, as have Karntructs, so I am interested in seeing how this plays. I have been pushing my artifact decks a bit more because I like cheap cards such as retrofitter and shadowspear, and they are great for alot of decks.
What's the average size this gets to? My main concern is the 2 cost to equip makes it hard to swap it about for attack/defence, but I guess the trade off is I can slam this as a 3 mana 5/5 sometimes.
Is the enchantment part trinket text in most environments? I feel like most decks in my environment are running 2 at most.
A friend is currently cubing it, but it's a brand new cube with 4 drafts total, so it's hard to say from that but they seem to like it.
That feels more like the black version, it's a free village rites.
Still excited to see the rest of the cycle, high hopes for black and red.
To be fair, I expect my drafters will have the same responses as you to my possible cut, so I'm in the minority on being bored with strix.
The upside of cashing in a dork or ETB value greature (like reclamation sage) feels like a fair trade off for the extra pip.
Is it? I think it's about even. Some effects would much rather sac a thing than pitch a card. In the mid-late game pitching a card is less appealing than sacing an out classed body.
I think the "non-token" clause is a sign it was too good and it had to be toned down a bit.
I've ran Strix for years so I may give this a shot over it for variety now that I cut tinker. Is its the correct swap? Likly not, but this little guys too cut not to try.
If you sac an elf you are card neutral (expend 2 cards, get 1 in play 1 to hand) and your mana is more resilient than the elf would have been. You still get to uptap t2, drop a land and make 3 mana with access to any colours you wanted to grab.
If its not a chase rare I might try it over Cultivate.
I really hope this is part of a spicy cycle. I'd be all over the red version if it was Char with the alternate cost of saccing a red creature (although sadly its likely gonna blow up artifacts).
I wouldn't say no impact; it adds 2 perminants to the board, represents a 4/4 with a bag of keywords or you can put the sword elsewhere.
It can't be cleanly answered by 1 spell so I'd never be worried about being blown out casting this. The equipment is going to make attacks alot easier on later turns if it hangs about and the mouse is a 3/3 for 3, so not an underwhelming stat line on attack or defence.
If 2 cards from your top 8 isn't turning things around for you then there isn't much hope.
Even paying 4 at instant speed feels like a solid deal.
Has all the usuall artifact synergy of being a cheap artifact plus it just keeps making more.
Left alone for long enough it can generate a ton of value. I think it needs anough source of thopters to really go crazy, but I have definitly won long grind games off the back of making endless flying threats.
It's a solid managing for control decks as in the late game if you don't need your interaction counter you can just make servo for 2 or even just pay the 6 for a thopter that can chip in after you untap
Cool. Definitely not either or, my cube definitely has room for both.
The first cast of nettlecyst is definitely better value as you don't need a creature. But plating is better imo if you have any plan to move it about as it only costs 1 on your turn. Your opponent has to respect the fact you can move it instant place for BB
Thanks for the feedback. I think cranial plating has been over performing to be fair, but it put this card back on my radar. The 1 to equip on plating has been a big part of it though as it can move about for attack/defence. Thopters + plating has done a lot of work as it's easy enough to pump them to 5 power.
Think I'm definitely going to try nettlecyst next time I'm making changes.
What's the average size this gets to? My main concern is the 2 cost to equip makes it hard to swap it about for attack/defence, but I guess the trade off is I can slam this as a 3 mana 5/5 sometimes.
Is the enchantment part trinket text in most environments? I feel like most decks in my environment are running 2 at most.
A friend is currently cubing it, but it's a brand new cube with 4 drafts total, so it's hard to say from that but they seem to like it.
It gets anything off the board for a turn, and opens it up to being countered on the way back down. In a long game it breaks stalled boards.